The city has many historic features, including one of the largest marketplaces in Europe after Kraków, along with one of the largest old squares in Poland; the late 19th century Ratusz (city hall) is centred in the square. Other points of interest include:
- Saint Margaret's basilica, Bazylika kolegiacka Św. Małgorzaty (15th century). The coat of arms shows St. Margaret and a dragon; her name day is July 20.
- A 15th-century house Dom Gotycki containing a regional museum.
- A gothic Franciscan church.
- The Great Synagogue, dating from 1746, now the Galeria Dawna Synagoga, a gallery with some historical displays. There is a memorial tablet on the front in Polish, Hebrew, and Yiddish. Across the Kamienica River is the Jewish cemetery.
- Saint Roch, a church of wooden construction from the 15th century, in the Dąbrówka district. The old cemetery chapel St. Helen's Church is another example.
- The partially restored ruins of a mediæval Royal Castle from the 14th century during the reign of Kazimierz the Great. It was destroyed in 1945 at the end of World War II when it was used as a German ammunition store and was the site of mass executions. There are also the remains of the city walls nearby.
- An open-air museum or skansen (Sądecki Park Etnograficzny), containing a village of relocated authentic structures recreating indigenous architecture, customs, and folk culture from the region. Of particular note are the wooden churches, including an Orthodox church and the Roma (Gypsy) village.
- Stary Sącz (Old Sącz) 10km to the south, founded in 1163 but smaller than Nowy (New) Sącz, has a charming cobbled market square, with a convent of Poor Clares to the east.
- There are also several routes emphasising wooden churches in the region of note.
The mountainous country around Nowy Sącz is also popular with tourists, hikers and skiers, especially the Beskid Sądecki mountains (part of the Carpathians), of which the highest peak is Radziejowa (1262m above sea level). Nearby popular mountain resorts include Krynica-Zdrój and Piwniczna-Zdrój ("Zdrój" means "health spa"). 15km north of Nowy Sącz is Lake Rożnów (Jezioro Rożnowskie), a reservoir (22km long, covering an area of 16km², and having a capacity of 193,000,000 m³), with many dachas and camping sites. To the north of the lake is the Ciężkowice-Rożnów Landscape Park (Park Ciężkowicko-Rożnowski). An annual festival of dance featuring children from highland regions from around the world takes place in July.